The American Petroleum Institute, the oil industry trade association, quickly followed news of a new “rapid response system”being developed by four of the world’s major oil companies with a statement touting the industry’s “commitment to safe operations.” According to the statement:
“„Today’s announcement demonstrates the industry’s commitment to safe operations. The experts and engineers at these companies will build on the lessons of the Deepwater Horizon accident to design, develop and implement a state-of-the-art engineering system that will raise industry safety preparedness and capability.
API also outlined more details on the system. Four oil companies — Exxon Mobil, Chevron, ConocoPhillips and Royal Dutch Shell — have put $1 billion into a new non-profit organization called the Marine Well Containment Company. The non-profit will construct a new “subsea containment assembly,” which will stop the flow of oil in the event of a future blowout, API said.